Nursing bottle holder



NOV. 12, 1963 E, ]DAHL 3,110,407

NURSING BOTTLE HOLDER Filed Feb. 23, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Nov. 12, 1963 E. J. DAHL 3,110,407

NURSING BOTTLE HOLDER Filed Feb. 23, 1962 2 Sheets-Shea?. 2

3,110,407 NURSING BOTTLE HGLDER Emily .I ane Dahl, Mendota Heights, Minn. (1165 Ashland Ave., St. Paul 4, Minn.) Filed Feb. 23, 1962, Ser. No. 175,259 Claims. (Cl. 21S- 12) Ihe present invention relates to a nursing bottle holder by which the bottle can be held or supported in use. My invention is particularly concerned with the provision of novel holders for nursing bottles designed to facilitate the feeding of babes-in-arms. This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending application Serial No. 771,467 filed November 3, 1958, now abandoned.

In bottle-nursing infants too young to support and hold the nursing ybottle themselves, the infant ordinarily is cradled in the lap and across one arm of the person holding him. The bottle is held in the appropriate position for nursing with the other hand. Thus Ithe person feeding the baby ordinarily has no free hand with which to derive pleasures for himself, such as holding and reading a magazine or newspaper, etc. It is possible to cradle the infant in one arm and hold the nursing bottle in the same arm; but such is extremely fatiguing as it requires the bottle to be 'held in a very unnatural position with the wrist cocked at an extremely awkward and fatiguing angle. And often in order to accomplish this one-handed feeding, the infant himself must be supported in an uncomfortable unnatural position. Even in conventional bottle nursing, wherein the infant is cradled in one arm and the nursing bottle held in the other, the majority of the support for and movement in manipulating the bottle is provided by the wrist itself. Seldom can the hand or wrist be supported or rested. Fatigue is thus unnecessarily high.

The present invention is directed to the provision of -a holder for `a nursing bottle by which the disadvantages above-mentioned and other disadvantages inherent in heretofore employed bottle nursing procedures are alleviated. It is specifically concerned with a novel nursing bottle holder which permits a bottle contained thereby to be held in nursing position while the wrist is in a comfortable supported position.

The manner in which these and other objects and advantages are attained by the present invention Will be readily understood from the following description taken in conjunction with the drawing, Iin which:

FIGURE 1 is a side View showing one preferred embodiment of my invention containing a nursing bottle, and showing also the manner in which the assembly manually lis held;

FIGURE 2 is a side View partially cut away, taken at a slight angle as indicated by the lines 2 2 of FIGURE 3, showing the device of FIGURE 1 in detail;

FIGURE 3 is a section view taken along the lines 3--3 of FIGURE 2, but without showing the bottle in place;

FIGURE 4 is a :side view, taken at a slight angle as indicated by the lines 4-4 of FIGURE 5, of a further embodiment of my invention; and

FIGURE 5 is .a section view of the device of FIG- URE 4 taken along the lines y4--4 of said FIGURE 4, but without showing the bottle in place.

Referring now to FIGURES 1 3 of the drawing, wherein like reference characters denote corresponding parts in the several views, the embodiment of my novel device shown is comprised of a jacket 10, which conforms in shape to the exterior of 4a conventional nursing bottle 12. The nursing bottle for example, may be of hexagonal cross-section. The bottle is provided with a threaded open end '13 of smaller diameter than that of the main diameter of the bottle. Threaded on said threaded end 13 43,1 10,4@7 Patented Nov. 12, 1963 is a nipple holder 14 by which a nipple 16 is detachably held to the bottle. A shouldered neck 18 is dened where the reduction in diameter occurs adjacent the threaded end.

The jacket 10 is composed of a body 20 formed of a flexible resilient material which ts closely around and about the sides of bottle 12, positioned therein. Adjacent its forward end the diameter of body 20 reduces to define a shoulder 22 conforming generaly with the neck 18 of bottle 12. A base closure 24 is aliixed to the yother end of body 2t) and tits about the base of bottle .12.

Aixed jacket 10 adjacent the base end thereof is a pistol-grip type handle 25. Said handle extends in a lateral direction generally perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the jacket 10 and bottle 12 positioned therewithin. The handle preferably is of substantial cross-section so that when the fingers are wrapped around the handle they need not be uncomfortably clenched to hold the device securely.

On one side thereof body 20 is slotted lengthwise for a substantial distance to dene a lengthwise open portion 26, said open portion extending all .the way to the narrowed shoulder 22. Preferably said open portion is disposed on the opposite side of jacket 10 from handle 25. Thus the body 20 can be spread apart on each side of open port-ion 26 so that a nursing bottle may be inserted or removed from the jacket 10.

lUsually, nursing bottles contain indicia 27 extending along certain sides thereof which indicate the volume of liquid in the bottles; e.g., ounces or cubic centimeters, at various levels. Thereby the amount of milk or formula consumed by an infant from time to time can be determined. So that the indicia 26 can be read at any time, the open portion 26 is shaped such that the indicia are in registry beneath the open portion 26. If the bottle contains no indicia, the liquid level determining means of my device alternatively can be provided through havfing the body 10 composed of translucent or transparent material (so the liquid level can be seen therethrough) with volume indicia being stamped or formed along the body 20.

Adjacent to the shoulder 22 of body 20 on one side of the open portion 26, jacket 10 is provided with a short strap 2S which extends transversely of and across said open portion. By pulling said strap up snugly, the jacket 10 conforms closely -about the bottle 12. One member of a snap fastener assembly 30 is lafhxed to strap 28 adjacent the free end thereof and the other component of said assembly 30 is fastened in the shoulder 22 so that the first component registers therewith when the jacket is closely formed about the nursing bottle. Thus when snap 30 is closed, la bottle positioned within jacket 10 is rmly held in place. On the other hand, by opening lthe snap assembly 30 and pulling strap 28 back upon itself, body 20 is spread along the open portion 26 therein permitting easy removal of the bottle.

'In use, my novel nursing bottle holder is positioned about a nursing bottle either prior or subsequent to the filling of the lattea with formula or warm milk for the infant to -be fed. Then after cradling the infant in one arm the holder comfortably is grasped in the hand of the lsame arm. As shown in FIGURE 1, the thumb extends generally perpendicularly across the forward (toward the nipple end) edge Iof the handle and the fingers extend lightly over the opposite edge of 'the handle. That is, the handle is grasped somewhat in a back-handed position. It Will thus be seen that the bottle can be manipulated simply by moving the thumb and fingers without necessity of any extensive movement on the part of the wrist, which is generally vertically inclined. Since the wrist furnishes little or no movement, for comfort it can be supported, for example, on the arm of 'a chair.

The -point at which the `assembly is gra-sped is some distance below the longitudinal centerline of the bottle. Hence, a slight angular movement of the handle results in a substantial movement of the bottle itself. Very slight movements with the thumb and fingers permit all of the manipulation necessary to keep the bottle in the proper feeding position. The infant need not -be placed in any awkward position, for by cradling the infant comfortably over the arm, the latter lautomaticmly assumes the proper position. Thus, with extrem-e comfort on the part of the person feeding the infant, land Without substantial fatigue, an infant may be fed while Ithe person feeding -him has one hand entirely free. Of course, the assembly can be similarly grasped in the hand of the arm not holding the infaut with the wrist cocked slightly in the opposite direction; thus instead of extending back along rthe same anni the 'bottle is disposed so that the nipple points toward the infant cnadled in the `other arm. Again the wrist is generally upright, and can be supported while the device is manipulated primarily with the thumb and lingers.

Again convenience and comfort results which cannot be attained by holding the bottle itself or my employing heretofore known bottle holders.

Referring now to FIGURES 4 and 5, a further embodiment of my invention comprises a jacket `ill which is somewhat similar to that sof the device shown in FIG- URES 1 3. However, lthe forward end of the jacket terminates in a collar i2 which forms :a part of =the body 44 of the jacket 4t?. Said collar conforms generally with and extends entirely about ithe neck .6 of the nursing bottle 48. Adjacent its base end, jacket il? terminates in a generally cylindrical (or polygonal) collar Sti, which extends around bottle 48 adjacent its base. In this embogdiment the base of the jacket does not enclose the base end of the bottle, but instead collar 50 terminates just short thereof.

A pistol grip type handle 52, preferably formed in-tegnally with jacket 4t), extends laterally from a position adjacent base collar Si). fI-f desired, however, said handle can be disposed in a ldifferent position in respect to said jacket, such as being positioned 'further forwardly.

The device is held on the bottle by Ithe threaded nipple holding cap 54 which genenally abuts or otherwise contacts the forward edge of collar 42 when threaded )on the bottle. When it is desired to remove the device from the bottle, cap 54 is removed and the entire device is slid forwardly over the smaller threaded end of the bottle. (This is in contradistinction -to the embodiment of FlG- URES 1-3 which is removed from the base end of the bottle.) The device, of course, is installed on the bottle by passing the jacket base fend lirst over the small end of the bottle in a fashion opposite to its removal.

Between neck collar 42 and base collali Stir, body 44 of the jacket is slotted lengthwise for a substantial distance to denne a lengthwise open portion S6, through which the volume indicia on the bottle c-an be read. Also, said .open portion `56 serves to facilitate attachment and removal of my device.

Preferably, my nursing bottle holder is fabricated 4or molded from a single piece of flexible plastic material, eg., polyethylene, or the like. I-t thus can be very attractively colored -and decorated. VI-t is light in weight. The bottle can be stood on end for filling without its being toppled by the holder. To facilitate stability, if desired, the handle of the device can extend somewhat rearwardly with the back-most corner 32 thereof so positioned that when the assembly is disposed with the bottle standing vertically for filling, the said corner 32 just touches the surface upon which the assembly is set, thus stabilizing it. The jacket can serve as an insulating member thus tending to keep warm milk or formula contained Within the bottle at the desired temperature. However, if desired, additional insulation can be achieved by providing the jacket 1t) with double walls and a ydead air .space extending therewithin, thus providing a vacuum bottle effect. Various other modifications of my device, all within the spirit hereof, undoubtedly Will suggest themselves. For example, it -may be desirable to insert and remove the bottle from fthe base end instead of the forward end of the jacket, .and to have a base cap which replaces the base end. No forward strap or open portion is then necessary. In such embodiment any volume indicia on the bottle may be unintelligible through the body wall. However, the liquid level in the bottle can then be determined, for example, by employing the alternative determining means above noted. Such modifications are contemplated, however, it not being my intent to be limited to the specific embodiments here disclosed. Rather `my invention is to be considered taking the specilication as a whole, including the appended claims.

What I claim is:

l. A nursing bottle holder comprising a jacket including a resilient plastic Ibody having a narrowed end adapted to conform `to the shouldered neck of a nursing bottle and a base closure aliixed to said body at the other end .thereof, an elongate opening ydefined in said body lengthwise thereof lextending to said narrowed end, said opening allowing said body to be opened for insertion thereinto of la nursing bottle, said opening further being positioned yto register with volume-indicating indicia extending lengthwise along the side of -said bott-le, snap closure means for said body disposed lacross said opening at said narrowed end, and -a pistol-grip type handle positioned on said body .adjacent said other end, said handle extending laterally from said sleeve, being of substantial cross-section and about which ythe lingers of la hand can be wrapped without clenching.

2. A nursing bottle holder comp-rising a resilient plastic jacket removably attachable to a nursing bottle, said jacket having a narrowed end portion adapted to conform to and extend about the shouldered neck of -a nursing bottle, a cylindrical base portion for extending circumlferentially about said bottle adjacent its base end and a connecting porti-on connecting said narrow end and said base portion; and a laterally extending pistol-grip type handle of resilient plastic integrally attached to said jacket adjacent said base end, said handle being of substantial cross-section and Iabout which the ngers of a hand can be wrapped without clenching.

3. A nursing bottle holder comprising a resilient plastic jacket removably -attaohable to a nursing bottle, said Y jacket being shaped to conform at one end thereof to 4and about the shouldered neck of a nursing bottle and to extend adjacent to and about the base of said ybottle at the other end; and a laterally extending pistol-grip type handle integrally attached to said jacket intermediate the ends thereof, said handle being of substantial cross-section and about which the lingers of a hand can be wrapped without clenching.

4. A nursing bottle holder comprising a resilient plastic jacket removably attachable .to ,a nursing bottle, said jacket having a narrowed end collar adapted to conform to and extend about the shouldered neck of a nursing bottle, 'a base collar for extending circumferentially about said bottle adjacent to but short of its base end and a connecting portion connecting said narrowed end collar and said Abase collar; and a laterally extending pistol-grip type handle of resilient plastic integrally attached to said jacket adjacent said base collar, said handle being of substantial cross-section and about which the fingers of a hand can be Wrapped without clenching.

5 A nursing bottle holder comprising a jacket including a resilient plastic body having a narrowed end adapted to conform to `the shouldered neck of a nursing bottle and a base closure aliixed to said body at the other end thereof, an elongate opening :defined in said body length- Wise thereof extending to said narrowed end, said opening allowing said body to be opened for insertion hereinto of a nursing bottle, said opening further being positioned to register with volume-indicating indicia extending iengthwise along the side of said beide, closure means for said body disposed `across said opening at said nai'- rowed end, and a pistol-grip type hande positioned on said body adjacent said other end, said handie extending laterally from said sleeve, being of subsantial cross-sec- Reeremes; Cied in the iie of this paen UNITED STATE-S PATENS Miner July 6, 1954 Sewart Dec. 16, i958 

1. A NURSING BOTTLE HOLDER COMPRISING A JACKET INCLUDING A RESILIENT PLASTIC BODY HAVING A NARROWED END ADAPTED TO CONFORM TO THE SHOULDERED NECK OF A NURSING BOTTLE AND A BASE CLOSURE AFFIXED TO SAID BODY AT THE OTHER END THEREOF, AN ELONGAT OPENING DEFINED IN SAID BODY LENGTHWISE THEREOF EXTENDING TO SAID NARROWED END, SAID OPENING ALLOWING SAID BODY TO BE OPENED FOR INSERTION THEREINTO OF A NURSING BOTTLE, SAID OPENING FURTHER BEING POSITIONED TO REGISTER WITH VOLUME-INDICATING INDICIA EXTENDING LENGTHWISE ALONG THE SIDE OF SAID BOTTLE, SNAP CLOSURE MEANS FOR SAID BODY DISPOSED ACROSS SAID OPENING AT SAID NARROWED END, AND A PISTOL-GRIP TYPE HANDLE POSITIONED ON SAID BODY ADJACENT SAID OTHER END, SAID HANDLE EXTENDING LATERALLY FROM SAID SLEEVE, BEING OF SUBSTANTIAL CROSS-SECTION AND ABOUT WHICH THE FINGERS OF A HAND CAN BE WRAPPED WITHOUT CLENCHING. 